What a month it has been! We've even had an interview with Dave!
What a great month we have had at Dave Thompson Art, welcoming in the month of May with a Bank Holiday Weekend! To top it off we were lucky enough to have a second Bank Holiday weekend at the end of the month. We were very excited to have 20% off everything sales over these holidays which were a huge success! Mid-month, we were thrilled toinclude a mid-season flash sale of 24% off for 24 hours! If you missed out on these offers, not to worry, stay tuned for some upcoming offers and competitions over the next few months!
Introducing our Wednesday Wisdom posts this month, we have learnt some interesting facts on locations around Britain! The incredible Lyme Regis, also described as "the pearl of Dorset" opened the first fossil shop in Britain in 1826! Mary Anning, Lyme's most famous resident, was the first to find a fossil from the cliffs. It is also known as a place of "discovery" after several writers and painters visited the location, including Jane Austen! Dave was able to capture the pure beauty of Lyme Regis in his work on the location across the range of fantastic products including prints, mugs, cushions and so much more!
As the days get longer and the weather gets warmer, in true British fashion, we make our way down to the seaside and enjoy the summer months ahead! Our coastal location prints are a great escape to the beautiful spots around Britain where land meets sea; Dave is able to portray the attractiveness of these gorgeous locations through his prints. These popular coastal locations are available on canvases, tea towels, mouse mats and much more!
We were also lucky enough to interview the wonderful artist himself! Join us on Dave's journey of how he became an artist, his favourite location and whether we will be seeing new location prints in the upcoming months!
Interview with Dave:
Explain what you do in 100 words
When I started out, cut and paste was exactly that, you cut things out with a scalpel and glued them down to build up an image. You can achieve so much on the Mac now but I'm glad I have an art school background. I work from good photographic references and build up the image that way. My pictures are quite architectural. The skill is in taking the photography right back to basics, what's left out is often more important than what is left, it's about strong lines and shadows.
How long have you been illustrating for?
I was a commercial artist for many years with advertising agencies and for the past 20 years as a freelance illustrator.
How do you work?
Always on a mac in illustrator
What's your background?
Graphics and Illustration
What art do you most identify with?
1930-40's Flat colour poster art work.
What work do you most enjoying doing?
Drawing Buildings and Landscapes
Describe a real-life situation that inspired you?
My daughter's wedding at the Royal Botanic Garden which inspired me to further my illustrations into different aspects and places.
What jobs have you done other than being an artist?
An analyst in a Pharmaceutical Company, Swimming coach.
Why art?
Because I love the way you can express yourself in illustrations. Also how you can take an empty page and create an image.
What memorable responses have you had to your work?
Ben Ainslie thought the illustration I did for the America's cup was such a great illustration. People have now started to collect my work which is always nice to hear.
What do you dislike about the art world?
People who plagiarise your work.
What do you like about your work?
Getting a brief and completing the image.
What research to you do?
Books, visiting places, photographs.
What is your dream project?
I do not know it has not happened yet.
Name three artists you'd like to be compared to.
Norman Wilkinson, Tom Eckersley and Charley Harper
Favourite or most inspirational place?
Art galleries in many cities
What's the best piece of advice you've been given?
Stick to what you are good at.
Professionally, what's your goal?
To keep on producing the work people enjoy.
How did you get into creating Travel Posters?
From a young age, I always loved the posters around that I saw when traveling with my family.
Out of all of the locations you've illustrated, which was your favourite and why?
The one of Brighton beach as the colours and composition just worked making it quite unique.
Do you have any new locations potentially coming soon?
Always 2 or 3 on the go!